Curing-house for sweet-potatoes



E. I. ILES AND 0. L. HASTINGS.

CURING HOUSE FOR SWEET POTATOES- APPLICATION FILED JUNE 9. 1920.

1,353,752. P te tedsept. 21,1920.

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3 SHEETS-SHEET 2- E. J. ILES AND O. L. HASTINGS.

CURING HOUSE FOR SWEET POTATOES.

APPLICATION HLED JUNE 9, 1920. 1,353,752.

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ATTORNEYS WITNESSES E. J. ILES AND 0. L. HASTINGS- ICURING HOUSE FOR SWEET POTATOES.

APPLICATION men JUNE 9,1920.

1,353,752. PatentedSept. 21, 1920.

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A TTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CURING-HOUSE FOR SWEET-POTATOES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 21, 1920.

Application filed June 9, 1920. Serial lilo. 857,559.

T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that we, ELIJAH J ASPEB has and ODIE LEE HASTINGS, citizens of the United States, and residents of Alexandria, in the parish of Rapides and State of Louisiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Curin -Houses for Sweet Potatoes, of which the i ollowing is a specification.

Our present invention relates generally to storing and curing devices for vegetables, and more particularly to a sweet potato curing house by means of which a desired de gree of heat may be steadily maintained and thoroughly circulated, and a further ob, ject is the provision of a construction of this nature which is readily adaptable to different localities under different prevailing conditions.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating our present invention and forming a. part of this specification,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of our improved curing house,

Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section taken centrally therethrough, and

Figs. 3 and 4 are horizontal sections taken respectively on lines 3-3 and 44 of Fig. 2.

Referring now to these figures our invention proposesa curing house which is preferably provided with a centrally apertured peaked roof 10 over a centrally apertured and insulated ceiling 11, with a dead air space 12 between the ceiling and the roof, vertically through which an outlet flue 13 extends. The upper portion of this flue is mounted through the openings of the roof 10 and the ceiling 11, its upper end projecting above the roof and its lower end extend-l ing into the curing chamber 14 inclosed by walls 15 preferably formed of hollow tile for insulating purposes, one of which has a charging door 16.

The walls 15 are laid upon a foundation which preferably includes cement wall footings 17 spaced around the centrally located Walls 18 of a heating pit in which a heater 19 of any suitable character is disposed and. surrounded in spaced relation by a heating drum 20. This drum is of upright cylindrical form, with its lower end resting on the base of the pit and its upper end opening beneath the central solid section 21 of a slatted or otherwise reticulate charging floor 22 supported by floor beams 23.

The lower portion of the heating drum 20 has diametrically opposed openings 24 with which the inner ends of air flues 25 communicate, these air flues having their outer ends opening exteriorly through the lower portions of opposite side walls 15 and having controlling dampers 26 in their length, preferably located within the heating pit at opposite sides of the drum 20 and thus within ready reach for purposes of adjustment. Theoutiet flue 27 of theheater l9 referably leads at right angles to theair ues 25 as particularly seen in Figs. 2 and 4, to the lower end of a chimney 28 with which one of the side walls 15 is provided.

Rising from the charging floor 21 in spaced relation around the lower end of the circulation outlet flue 13 is an insulated cylinder 29, whose lower end is disposed on the solid central portion 21 of the charging floor and is thus closed to the entrance of air. This circulating cylinder extends up- Wardly for'the major portion of the height of the curing chamber 14 and has an upper open end spaced below the ceiling 11 into which the circulating air, rising inthecuring chamber 14 passes, this heated air being forced to circulate downwardly into the cylinder 29 and into the lower end of the outlet flue 13, the latter of which terminates in spaced relation above the solid section 21 of the charging floor. By this means we provide for a thorough circulation of heated air throughout the curing chamber 14, evenly through the sweet potatoes or other commodity to be cured, which are preferably orated and the crates piled upon one another upon the charging floor 22. p a

r In order to regulatcthe draft assisting to produce this circulation, we preferably provide the roof 10 with an upright 30 supporta pulley 31 at its upper end over which a flexible connection 32 extends; Ihis connection'is seeured at one endito the lower portion of the depending tube 33 0f a rotatable'cowl34, the said tube of which adjustably telescopes the upper end of the flue 13. 7 The flexible connection 32 extends downwardly around pulleys 35 and 36 and is secured at its other end to a counterweight 37,,thefanction of the latter of which is to maintain the cowl in vertically adjusted position and maintain desired effective length of the flue 13.

The heating pit is entered throu h a passage way 38 seen particularly in 1g. 4, the walls 39 of which join certain of the wall footings 17 with the walls 18 of the heating pit, and the outer end of this passage way is closed by a door 40. I In charging the curing house, the charging doors 16 are removed and the commodity to be cured, preferably in crates as above stated, is carried into the curing chamber directly from wagons, trucks and the lilre by which the commodity has been transported from the field, and after being charged the door 16 is again placed in closed position and after adjustment of the extension tube at the circulation outlet fine 13, the heater 19 is started and the air flue dampers 26 adjusted. Air taken into these air uses 25 passes into the drum 20 and becomes heated by the close proximity to the heater, the heated "air rising upwardly through the charging floor 22 around its central solid section 21 and thus around the cylinder 29. Further passage of the air has been previously described, and it is obvious that our invention "as thus constructed and adapted to operate is capable of erection and effective operation in different localities, that is where the weather conditions are different, and is calculated at all timesto maintain a thorough circulation of heated air throughout the curing chamber. This is particularly important in connection with the curing of sweet pot'atdes which require a steady thorough circulation for successful curing at a moderate heat.

1. Acurin house having insulating walls, a heating p 't, a reticulat'e charging floor having a central solid section above the heating pit, a cylinder rising from and having its lower and closed by the said central section, the upper end of the cylinder being open, a roof, and an outlet flue extending downwardly th'rou 'h the roof with its lower portion projecting downwardly into the said cylinder spaced relation. 1

2. A curing house having insulating walls, a heating pit, a reticulate charging floor having a central solid section above the heating pit, a cylinder rising from and having its lower closed by the said central section, the upper end of the cylinder being open, a roof, and an outlet flue extending downwardly through the roof with its lower portion projecting downwardl into the said cylinder in s aced relation, and a vertically adjustable tube telescoping the upper outer end of said flue and movable for draft adjusting purposes.

A curing house having insulating walls, a heating pit, a reticuia'te charging floor having a central solid section above the heat ing pit, a cylinder rising from and having its lower end closed by the said central section, the upper end of the cylinder being open, a roof, and an outlet flue extending downwardly through the roof with its lower portion projecting downwardly into the said cylinder in spaced relation, a tube telcscop ing the upper outer end of said due to form an adjustable draft extension, and means for adjusting said tube and holding the same in "adjusted position.

4. A curing house having insulating walls, a heating pit, a reticuiate charging floor having a central solid section above the heating pit, a. cylinder rising from and having its lower end closed by the said central section, the upper end of the cylinder being open, a roof, and an outlet flue extending downwardly through the roof with its lower p'drtionprojecting downwardly into the said cylinder in spaced relation, a tube telescoping the upper outer end of said flue to form an adjustable draft extension, and means for adjusting said tube and holding the same in adjusted position, including flexible connections and a controlling counterweight for said connections as described.

5. A curing house including means forming a curing chamber having a reticulate charging floor, a vertical cylinder in the cui'in'g chamber having a closed lower end and an open upper end, an outlet air flue having a lower open and depending into said cylinder, a heating pit below the charging floor, a heater in said pit, a drum around the heater having an upper open end below the charging floor, an outlet fine for the heater, and air intake fines communicating with the lower portion of the drum and having cont-rolling dampers as described.

6. In a device of the character described, means forming a curing chamber having a reticulate charging floor provided. with a central solid section, a cylinder rising within the curing chamber and opening at its upper end adiacent to the top of the chamher, the lower ends of said cylinder being disposed on and closed by the central solid section of the charging floor, an outlet fine the lower 'end of which depends into the said cylinder in spaced relation thereto and terinmate's above the charging floor, and air heating means located below the charging floor for circulating heated air upwardly through thereticulate portion of the chargi ng floor and into the curing chamber.

' ELIJAH JASPER ILES.

'ODIE HASTINGS. 

